Lateral prefrontal cortex mediates the cognitive modification of attentional bias.

ABSTRACT:

Background

A tendency to orient attention toward threatening stimuli may be involved in the etiology of anxiety disorders. In keeping with this, both psychological and pharmacological treatments of anxiety reduce this negative attentional bias. It has been hypothesized, but not proved, that psychological interventions may alter the function of prefrontal regions supervising the allocation of attentional resources.

Methods

The current study examined the effects of a cognitive training regime on attention. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two training conditions: "attend-threat" training, which increases negative attentional bias, or "avoid-threat" training, which reduces it. The behavioral effects of training were assessed using a sample of 24 healthy participant

SUBMITTER: Browning M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2866253 | biostudies-literature | 2010 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature